Not Only An Elite Runner, Ryan Johnston Details Music Career


Former Lexington cross country and distance track standout, Ryan Johnston joined the MileSplit Ohio podcast to break down his college career at the University of Louisville and to reminisce on the high school days. 

The aspiring singer and songwriter also detailed his love of music, where he derives his musical inspiration from and how he intends to steer his passion for performing moving forward.

Johnston concludes our episode by performing a pair of his favorite songs: 'Better Together' by Luke Combs and his original solo, 'I'm Yours.' 

Coverage - 

* Make sure to give Ryan a follow on his official Instagram music page ~ @ryanjohnston_music


Time Stamps - 

  • 1:30 -- Discussing high school tenure at Lexington 
  • 3:05 -- Recapping depth of Division 2 XC runners during high school 
  • 4:10 -- What his college experience has been like at Louisville 
  • 5:35 -- Detailing injuries and the road back to recovery 
  • 6:50 -- Comparing high school vs. college training mileage 
  • 7:50 -- Where his training mileage is at currently 
  • 8:40 -- Outlining the challenges with moving up in distance for college XC
  • 9:30 -- Talking his approach to the 10k distance for postseason meets 
  • 10:30 -- What goals he'd like to accomplish as a member of the Cardinals
  • 11:25 -- What he needs to do in order to break 4 minutes for the mile 
  • 12:00 -- Talking Leo Daschbach's sub-4 minute mile at MileSplit's Quarantine Clasico
  • 12:50 -- Debating his preference between track and cross country competition 
  • 14:30 -- Explaining his history with singing and playing instruments 
  • 16:05 -- How he honed his musical talent over the years 
  • 16:50 -- Who his musical inspirations are 
  • 17:25 -- What musical genres he prefers and focuses on 
  • 17:55 -- Naming the musical instruments that he plays 
  • 18:55 -- His younger brother Kyle's involvement with music 
  • 19:40 -- Talking parallels between running and playing music 
  • 21:05 -- How he balances both activities and his time management approach
  • 22:10 -- Outlining his own originally written songs
  • 23:05 -- Naming his favorite bands and individual artists for playing covers
  • 25:10 -- Performance #1 ~ Luke Combs / 'Better Together' 
  • 28:55 -- Performance #2 ~ Ryan Johnston / 'I'm Yours'